(a) Front offices keep registers recording instances and time where offices were unable to operate. During Quarter 1, 2023/2024 FY the total number of office hours lost calculated to 15 289 hours.

(i) Load shedding contributed 6242 hours,

(ii) Office closures (protest action) 46 hours,

(iii) Water outages contributed 329 hours,

(iv) System downtimes contributed 8672 hours.

(v) Verification scanners will only be down as ...

(a) The location of each office that has implemented the project is in the attached table marked Annexure A.

(b)(i) The first phase of the project recruited a total of 2000 youth. Of these, some have received other appointments and the number has reduced to 1146. The Department is filling the vacancies. The second phase is to recruit 4000 youth and this recruitment ...

The visa waiver for Palestinian ordinary passport holders was implemented on 15 September 2023. Negotiations with Palestinian counterparts on the Agreement to waive visa requirements for Diplomatic passport holders only, are at an advanced stage.

END

1. The Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster (JCPS), which the Department is part of and which now also includes the Border Management Authority (BMA), has developed a strategy to deal with countering illegal mining throughout the country. There is special focus on four provinces namely Gauteng Province, North-West Province, Mpumalanga and Limpopo Province due to the history of mining.

2. The counter-return operations ...

1. We have strengthened the verification process of bank statements and other supporting documents. We have had engagements with banks to secure nodal persons to assist in verifications. Weekly meeting are being held with the eVisa adjudicators to review their process and enforce the verification process and update their SOP. Cases that require in depth investigation will be referred to the mission for interview and ...

a) The Department received three (3) complaints of Sexual Harassment in the financial year 2022/2023.

b) All cases (3) were investigated and two complaints were found to be substantive and one was not, owing to lack of evidence.

c) One of the two cases found to be substantive, the perpetrator was charged and found guilty and the sanction of two months’ suspension without pay ...

1. The Memorandum of Understanding with the banks will be extended to 31 March 2024.

(2)(a) ABSA, Discovery, FNB, Investec, Nedbank, Standard Bank.

(2)(b) Total number of bank branches is 29 and the breakdown is depicted below:

• ABSA: 5
• FNB: 7
• Nedbank: 6
• Standard Bank: 9
• Investec Bank: 1
• Discovery Bank: 1

END

The Department and entities have responded as follows:

(i) Department of Home Affairs (DHA)

(a)(aa) 2020-21: R340 400

(a)(bb) 2021-22: R309 350

(a)(cc) 2022-23: R222 710

(b) 2020-21: Government Printing Works

2021-22: Government Printing Works

2022-23: Makgoka Consulting provide the editing, layout and design while Government Printing Works provided the printing services.

(c) 2020-21: 1000

2021-22: 500

2022-23: Intended number to print is 100

(ii) Independent Electoral ...

(1)(a) I issued a Notice calling upon nominations for appointment of individuals to the Electoral Reform Consultation Panel (the “Panel”). Nominations have been received and the nominations are currently being analysed. As required, under section 23 of the Electoral Amendment Act, 2023 (Act No. 1 of 2023) (the “Amendment Act”), the Minister is enjoined to establish the Panel in consultation with the Independent Electoral ...

The Honourable Member is herewith informed that Diplomatic passports are issued according to the South African Diplomatic Passport Policy and that the Department of Home Affairs is not the custodian of this policy, and similarly not responsible for the application(s) as well as the issuance of this category of passports whatsoever. Hence it is requested that any information relating to Diplomatic Passports should be ...